Just One Yesterday - For H2Ozikkiaddict's Competition
by When The Tide Comes In
Summary: As the title suggests, my entry for H2Ozikkiaddict's competition. Rikki reflects on her turbulent relationship with Zane. Rikki/Zane.


_I thought of angels choking on their halos_  
_Get them drunk on rose water_  
_See how dirty I can get them—pulling out their fragile teeth_  
_And clip their tiny wings._

oOo

Rikki liked to think of herself as a one woman army; she was beautiful, intelligent, brave, strong-willed, and stubborn as all hell—not to mention she could literally light anything her heart desired on fire with a mere twist of her wrist. She was in complete control of her life and didn't need anyone else other than herself to survive. Cleo and Emma were her friends now, sure, but if they were to suddenly drop her like a piece of trash Rikki knew it wouldn't be the end of the world. She wouldn't even blink. She'd do what she always did when someone got tired of her and move on. The same applied to boyfriends. Once they were done with her she'd leave them with an obscene final word and her head held high.

Rikki knew better than to give _anyone_ the privilege of seeing her fall apart. She was stronger than that. _  
_

It wasn't until after two rocky on-and-off-again years with Zane Bennett came to end that Rikki discovered how much she'd really let the walls she'd put up around her heart crumble. She had now idea how much of herself she'd invested in him, in their relationship, until she watched Zane kiss another woman without so much as a second of hesitation. It was as if the past two years of stolen glances and heated kisses and secretly sneaking into one another's house in the middle of the night had never happened. Rikki tried to rationalize the ache in her chest after ending their relationship, write it off as anger or betrayal or something similar_, _but always ended up drawing a blank. She knew what anger and betrayal felt like, they were nothing new in her life, but what she had felt—still feels—for Zane was something she'd never experienced before. It was explosive and intense and white hot and it left her feeling absolutely breathless.

—but whatever that feeling had been was gone now, because _he_ was gone now, and Rikki was having a hard time moving on.

She idly thought about asking Cleo how she moved on from Lewis once, and if it still hurt to look at him sometimes. After the incident with Charlotte her and Lewis tried to rekindle their relationship but, just a month and a half in, Cleo decided to end it for good. Something about Lewis had changed, Rikki recalled her saying, something about them both had changed during everything that happened and they just weren't... compatible anymore. Though the tension in Cleo's voice betrayed her and told Rikki everything she needed to know; Lewis wasn't about to leave his friends behind for a girl, but it wasn't Cleo he wanted. That entire year had been an absolute mess filled with conflicted, confusing, contradicting emotions and a lose canon mermaid obsessed with power and Rikki was beyond glad it was over.

She never did ask Cleo about it. Rikki decided her own peace of mind wasn't worth festering old wounds.

It took everything in her power not to answer Zane's numerous phone calls. He was relentless, and when Zane wasn't calling her he was harassing her at work or anywhere else he managed to find her. Rikki wasn't giving into him this time, though. There wasn't going to be "another chance." She wasn't an accessory or a toy to be thrown away, she was a person with needs and wants and feelings and if Zane didn't understand that he obviously wasn't mature enough for a long term relationship. As much as Rikki loathed to admit it, and despite everything he'd put her through, she still found herself missing him and who they used to be.

"Is this seat taken?" A familiar voice asked from beside her.

Rikki didn't bother looking up from the magazine she'd been flipping through. "Yes. Now leave me alone."

Zane sat down in front of her anyway. "Can we talk?"

"No. Now go away before I boil you from the inside out. Cleo and Bella are going to be here any second and I don't want you here when they show up."

"Five minutes. That's all I'm asking, please."

Rikki slammed her magazine down on the table. "Dammit Zane, no! We're done, end of story. There isn't a a thing you can say or do that would make me take you back."

She heard him sigh. "I love you."

For a moment the world seemed to tilt on it's axis. It was the first time Zane, let alone anyone, had told her that. Those four words—_I love you_—seemed to hang in the air like a thick gaseous venom, making it nearly impossible to breathe. _  
_

"No." Rikki finally said. "No, I'm not falling for that. If you really loved me, you'd let me go and move on." She bite down on the inside of her cheek, forcing her lip to stop quivering. "If you loved me you'd want me to be happy no matter what, regardless of if you're in the picture or not. You've only ever been in this relationship for yourself."

Zane huffed. "For myself? And what exactly have I gotten out of this relationship? You're not exactly the romantic type. Or the friendly type, come to think of it."

"Are you kidding me right now?!" Rikki exclaimed. How _dare _he?! "Well lets see!; the sex, for one! You seemed to like that an awful lot! A permanent date for your asshole father's stupid business parties, one of which threatened to destroy Mako Island**—"**

"Ooh, _what _a surprise!" Zane interrupted. "We're back on the Mako Island topic!"

"Mako Island is a part of me!—"

"It's a big hunk of rock and sand and trees floating in the ocean!"

"It's _magical! _It turned me into a _mermaid_, do you not understand how incredible that is?! That island is like home to me! It's what bonded me and Cleo and Emma! It's always been our place, it's—" Rikki stopped mid-sentence, laughing humorlessly. "Why am I even explaining this to you? You don't care."

"No, I don't." Zane retorted. "I care about you."

"No Zane, you don't. Because if you cared about me you'd care about Mako, too. It's a part of me."

Before Zane could come up with a rebuttal, Cleo and Bella came striding over. Rikki was so relieved she could've cried.

"Finally." She breathed as she stood up. "C'mon guys, lets go."

"Is everything okay?" Bella asked, concerned.

"Perfect." Rikki deadpanned. "Come on guys, please. Let's go."

She walked briskly outside, Cleo and Bella in tow and demanding answers.

"Just Zane being Zane," Rikki told them. "Now, are we going for a swim or not?"

"What do you think?" Cleo teased. "Last one to Mako has to buy me a juice!"

As Rikki chased Cleo and Bella down to the shoreline she couldn't help but take in a deep breath of warm salty ocean air and smile. It was a beautiful day, and even though her heart still felt like it was filled with shards of glass, she knew she'd be alright. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, or even next week—but she'd be okay eventually.

Back inside the cafe Zane stood solemnly in the entrance, silently watching as the woman he didn't know how to love ran to meet her happily ever after; the sea.

* * *

**A/N**: _Soooooooooo, I have no idea what this is. Just an angsty... oneshot... thing. Idk. :p I wanted to submit something to H2Ozikkiaddict's competition and this was the best I could come up with short notice, haha. Feel free to leave your thoughts or whatever, reviews keep me writing! xP For now, I'm off to update Morning Bled! [putters off]_


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